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Poured from a 64oz growler into 2 tulip glasses. Thanks to HeatherAnn for the assist!

A: Pours a rich, orange-y gold with a tiny shock of bubbly white foam on top. Retention is fleeting with a few whisps of skim and a thin collar being the only things remaining after 30 seconds or so. Carbonation is rather lazy with a single column of bubbles rising from where the stem meets the bowl of the glass.

S: Interesting toasted grain aroma that leads into some subtle tropical fruitiness. Sort of like Rice Krispies with a sliver of mango or cantaloupe laid across the top. Very subdued yet classy.

T: See above. Hops are lightly fruity and with a hint of pine needle and sappy tree bark. Some smokey cocoa and a major toasted rice flavor during the finish.

T - The first taste you get is a very unique toasted rice flavor. Almost like a Rice Krispy taste. You get the szechuan peppers at the end as an aftertaste, which is really nice because they are not overpowering at all. The finish is very dry. Very unique and pleasant taste!

M - Dry with a fine carbonation. Light bodied.

O - This beer is meant to pair with Grant Achatz' Kyoto menu at "Next." Although that restaurant may be a little out of my reach (LOL)... I would love to have a growler of this next time I go to my favorite BYOB sushi place!

So this beer (like Half Acre's previous collaboration with Next, Sanguis) is brewed in collaboration with chefs Beran and Achatz of Next Restaurant, specifically for a dish or two in their current Kyoto themed menu.

The aroma is mostly that of toasted rice, like the rice Chex flavor. There's a floral spicy note here that's hard to characterize as any specific ingredient. Maybe a twinge of steely hops, but not much.

The flavor is pretty nice. Very balanced between all the components. What components are those? Well, a lot of toasted rice. Like if you somehow merged one of those Quaker rice cakes with a slice of toasted bread. There's Szechuan peppercorns in this beer, which make for a slightly floral note as well as a numbing quality. It's very slight though. Half Acre did not go overboard with the Szechuan peppercorns here.

Overall this is a pretty nice beer for pairing with lighter fish-based dishes. Serve this with sushi or with miso or dashi-based soups.

S - Szechuan spices, grass, pepper, earthy, some fruity hints, and wild rice. There's a sharp note note that could be alcohol but could also be on of the spices. I don't get a very strong sense of what the base beer was here.

T - The taste has significantly more malt sweetness, with the toasted rice also making a stronger appearance. Honey and fruity sweetness, with the peppery spices showing up in the finish.

M - Fairly light in body - was surprised to see this was 7%. Pleasant carbonation, with a dry wild rice-infused texture. Fairly clean finish.

D - I liked this beer a lot more than everyone else. I'm curious if it's a souped-up Gossamer base but with spices instead of dry-hopping, or if it's an entirely distinct recipe. I had a few glasses, and I'll probably kill the rest of the growler tonight or cook some rice with it.